Coarse-scale, multitemporal satellite image data were evaluated as a tool for detecting variation in vegetation productivity, as a potential indicator of change in rangeland condition in the western U.S. The conterminous U.S. Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) biweekly composite data set was employed using the six-year time series 1989-1994. Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) image bands for the state of New Mexico were imported into a Geographic Information System (GIS) for analysis with other spatial data sets.